Archive for February, 2015

We just went for a drive in a Volkswagen Touareg. What a vehicle. Obviously it wasn’t our first time driving one, but perhaps we had forgotten what an exceptional vehicle the Touareg really is. Two things in particular jumped out at us. First, despite the fact that it’s a big, powerful full-size SUV, it is surprisingly light-footed. Maybe it’s the feeling coming through the hydraulically-assisted steering, or perhaps it’s the 407 lbs-ft of torque available below 2000 rpm. Whatever the reason, the Touareg’s level of responsiveness that has no business being attached to a full-size SUV.

Fast, strong, nimble, efficient, long-lasting. These aren’t just hallmarks of great hockey players, but of great do-everything vehicles like the 2015 Volkswagen Golf Sportwagon and Tiguan. These are two vehicles with their sticks on the ice, ready for whatever’s thrown at them, but ready to do so in slightly different ways. Let’s take a closer look at these evenly-matched competitors.

The All-New 2015 Golf Sportwagon.

First up, the Golf Sportwagon in TDI Clean Diesel trim. This is the new generation of Volkswagen’s venerable midsize wagon, called the Sportwagon this time around, but previously known as the Golf Wagon and the Jetta Wagon before that. This car’s versatility has always made it a big seller in the Lower Mainland, where it seems to perfectly compliment the typical Lower Mainlander’s adventurous lifestyle. This new generation sees that versatility enhanced: more cargo space, more power, more legroom, shoulder room and elbowroom, and better fuel efficiency. We have a feeling you’re going to see a lot of these things on the road in the near future.

The 2015 Tiguan SE.

Next up, the Tiguan Special Edition. The Tiguan SE comes with an SE-only set of 17” rims and a unique list of standard features that place it somewhere between Trendline and Comfortline trim levels. It also comes standard with 4MOTION 4WD, which means it’s essentially a Tiguan Comfortline for $5000 less than a Tiguan Comfortline. If you know what we mean. If you don’t, we mean the Tiguan SE is a heck of a lot of vehicle for under $30,000, easily enough to give the Sportwagon TDI a run for its money.

So there you have it, two evenly matched—but kinda different—competitors. The Sportwagon combines its versatility with low-slung sportiness and efficiency, while the Tiguan combines its versatility with go-anywhere 4WD ruggedness. But which vehicle would win in a head-to-head faceoff? The stats below may help, but we suspect the real answer will require a couple of test drives.

With gas prices so low, will driving a TDI Clean Diesel still save you money at the pump? Good question. Let’s see if some simple arithmetic can’t help provide us an answer.

We’ll start with diesel.

Current Diesel Prices:

55L/tank * $1.05/L = $57.75/tank of diesel

Normal Diesel Prices:

55L/tank * $1.35/L = $74.35/tank of diesel

Current oil prices result in a $16.60 savings per tank of diesel.

Now let’s look at gas.

Current Gas Prices:

55L/tank * $0.95/L = $52.25/tank of gas

Normal Gas Prices:

55L/tank * $1.25/L = $68.75/tank of gas

Current oil prices result in a $16.50 savings per tank of gas.

What do these fuel prices mean in dollars/year?

Again, we’ll start with diesel.

Yearly diesel costs at current prices:

TDI fuel economy = 5.5L/100km, which equals 1000km/tank

Average km/year for average Canadian driver = 20,000km

20,000km/1000km = 20 tanks of diesel/year

20 tanks * $57.75/tank = $1155/year for diesel at current fuel prices

Yearly diesel costs at normal prices:

20 tanks * $74.35/tank = $1487/year for diesel at current fuel prices

This same reasoning can be applied to gas:

Yearly gas costs at current prices:

Gas (1.8L Turbo) fuel economy = 7.2L/100km, which equals 764km/tank

20,000km/764km = 26 tanks of gas/year

26 tanks * $52.25/tank = $1358.50/year for gas at current fuel prices

Yearly gas costs at normal prices:

26 tanks * $68.75/tank = $1787.50/year for gas at normal fuel prices

So what does this all mean?

Well at the moment, the average, say, Golf TDI Diesel driver will save $203.50/year over the average Golf 1.8L Gas driver. When fuel prices return to normal—which they no doubt will—the TDI driver will save $300.50 over the 1.8L driver.

Said another way, diesel prices need to be 23.6% higher than gas prices (meaning ~30 cents normally, or ~22 cents currently) for the TDI driver to spend the same fuel money per year as the 1.8L gas driver. The usual spread in diesel and gas prices is 8%, meaning that even in light of low fuel prices, the TDI driver stands to save money over the gas driver for the foreseeable future. Exactly how much will vary depending on how many kilometers/year are driven: those who drive more 20,000km/year stand to save more than the numbers presented here, while those who drive less than 20,000km/year stand to save less.